Inspira Financial will replace FSAFEDS as the Postal Service’s flexible spending account program administrator, beginning Wednesday, Jan. 1. All claims for 2024 must be submitted to FSAFEDS no later than Wednesday, April 30. Claims submitted to Inspira Financial for 2024 will be rejected. Employees who have questions regarding the change should email the USPS Benefits […]
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Postal Service employees aren’t just busy at work. Since its debut in January, Link’s “Off the Clock” feature has told you how some employees spend their free time. Among them: George Collins, a Los Angeles general expeditor who is a gifted painter. “I could always draw, and when I was in school and did a […]
• Rachel D. Jones, an Atlantic Division emergency preparedness specialist, was named WestPac Area’s acting facilities customer relations manager. • Regina R. Montalvo was named the Blanding, UT, postmaster. She previously served as the Wikieup, AZ, postmaster. • Shamika D. Roberts was named Myrtle Beach, SC, postmaster. She previously served as the Laurinburg, NC, postmaster. […]
The Postal Service is continuing to mark big milestones this holiday season. On Dec. 6, the organization delivered the 4 billionth peak season mailpiece in Haverford, PA, a suburb of Philadelphia. Linda Butts, a local letter carrier, handed the milestone package to customer Maria Rico outside her front door. “Four billion? This is remarkable,” said […]
Two individuals in the United States have their own ZIP Codes. Do you know who they are? To find out, tune into the “Jeopardy!” episode slated to air Tuesday, Dec. 24, when the correct answer will be featured as a clue. The “Jeopardy!” website has local broadcast times. […]
Busy, busy, busy! It’s the height of the Postal Service’s peak delivery season, and stories on the practical (holiday shipping tips) and the encouraging (the season’s 2.5 billionth delivery) filled Link last week. Of course, there was plenty of the inspirational. Link profiled some of the employees featured in “Dear Santa,” a documentary series on […]
City Carrier Assistant Gabrielle “Gabby” Washington was delivering mail in Radcliff, KY, last summer when she found a 93-year-old customer on the ground outside his home. The customer told her he had fallen and had been lying in the sun for an extended time. The man declined the Postal Service employee’s offer to call 911, […]
The latest entry on Postal Posts, the USPS blog, looks at the organization’s holiday advertising campaign. Sheila Holman, the Postal Service’s marketing vice president, wrote the post, which was published Dec. 18. […]
The Postal Service has announced release dates for the first batch of next year’s stamps, along with the cities where dedication ceremonies will be held: • Lunar New Year: Year of the Snake, Tuesday, Jan. 14, Boston; • Love 2025, Friday, Jan. 17, Kutztown, PA; • Spiral Galaxy and Star Cluster, Tuesday, Jan. 21, Big […]
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The Postal Service is accepting applications for its Centralized Funding for Development Scholarship. The professional development scholarship is designed to financially support nonbargaining employees who seek to enroll in training, college courses, degree programs or professional certification classes. Applications will be accepted from Wednesday, Jan. 1, through Friday, Jan. 31. The Centralized Funding for Development […]
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A snapshot of Postal Service scanning data shows the national rating was 96.49 percent during the week ending Dec. 13, down 0.83 percent from one week earlier. The data was collected Dec. 18. WestPac led the four areas with a rating of 97.48 percent, while Southern ranked last with a 95.49 percent rating. Among the […]
Read More… from WestPac Area, MN-ND District lead in scanning
Link was a no-Grinch zone last week. There were festive stories on holiday stamps, holiday gift ideas and even holiday-themed USPS social media frames. We reported on the Nov. 29 delivery of the 1 billionth mailpiece of peak season, a Priority Mail package addressed to the Santa Claus Museum in the Indiana town of the […]
Rural Carrier Associate Jaylen Lockhart was delivering mail recently in Aurora, IL, when he saw customer Guy Miller fall while walking his dog. Lockhart parked his vehicle and rushed to check on the 78-year-old man, who was bleeding from the head and face. He cautioned Miller against trying to get up in case of serious […]
Read More… from This employee aided a man who fell — then was invited to his family’s holiday dinner
Monday, Dec. 16, is the last day for USPS Operation Santa participants to adopt a letter. It’s also the recommended date to ship gifts by for expected delivery before Wednesday, Dec. 25. The program’s website has additional information. […]
USPS is delivering exceptional service during the holiday rush and expects continued success during the season’s busiest period — the week before Christmas — the organization reported Dec. 12. Through the substantial progress the Postal Service has made under its 10-year Delivering for America plan — a $40 billion investment aimed at modernizing and reinvigorating […]
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When the Postal Service delivered its 1 billionth piece of peak season mail, it fittingly went to the “chief elf” in Santa Claus, IN. Danni Fulkerson, a rural carrier associate, delivered the package to Patricia Koch at the Santa Claus Museum on Nov. 29. Koch, 93, the founder of the museum, heads its Letters to […]
My name is Mike Sieber and I’m a distribution clerk at the McKnight Post Office in Pittsburgh, where I’ve worked since 1983. When I’m off the clock on Sundays, I’m part of the chain crew who hold the signal poles — or “sticks” — at Pittsburgh Steelers home games. I was born a Steelers fan. […]
A snapshot of Postal Service scanning data shows the national rating was 96.5 percent during the week ending Dec. 6, down 1.17 percent from one week earlier. The data was collected Dec. 11. Atlantic led the four areas with a rating of 97.13 percent, while Southern ranked last with a 95.75 percent rating. Among the […]
Read More… from Atlantic Area, MN-ND District on top in scanning
Open season — the once-a-year opportunity for Postal Service employees to make changes to their health benefits or enroll in a new plan — has been extended through Friday, Dec. 13, at 11:59 p.m. Eastern. The extension covers the Postal Service Health Benefits (PSHB) Program, flexible spending accounts, the Annual Leave Exchange and the USPS […]
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The Postal Service has released its 2024 Holiday Ethics Guide to help employees comply with federal regulations involving giving and receiving gifts. Here are some general guidelines: • Gifts from outside sources. Employees may not accept a gift from an outside source. However, an employee may accept an unsolicited, noncash gift valued at $20 or […]
Postal Service employees with ACE computers can find information for troubleshooting IT issues on their own on the recently launched ACE Endpoint Resources website. The SharePoint site provides information about ACE workstations, monitors, printers, mobile devices and other topics. The website also can be accessed by typing “ACE” into the Edge web browser on ACE […]
Postal topics past and present have been getting plenty of screen time lately — and Link has had a front-row seat. On the big screen there’s “The Six Triple Eight,” which tells the story of the 6888th Central Postal Directory Battalion of the Women’s Army Corps. Comprised primarily of African American women, the group was […]
Rural Carrier Teri Barrington was on her way to deliver mail in Olney, TX, when she saw a man walking along the shoulder of a highway. Barrington safely pulled over and spoke to the man, who told her he was walking to a nearby town to get help after his car broke down. The Postal […]
The 6888th Central Postal Directory Battalion of the Women’s Army Corps made it possible for American troops to get letters from their loved ones during World War II. Some 80 years later, the story of these women is being told on the big screen. “The Six Triple Eight,” which stars Kerry Washington, was written and […]
High-deductible health plans are one of the options available to Postal Service employees during this year’s open season. Here are some facts about the plans, also called HDHPs: • HDHPs generally offer lower premiums than other plans. This means you’ll have less money taken out of your paycheck. • HDHPs offer greater flexibility. While HDHPs […]
The Postal Service will soon implement a new contractual approach with package consolidators, companies that enter large volumes of packages into various points in the USPS network. The change is a result of the organization’s refreshed product offerings and improved operational and financial strategies. Effective Jan. 1, USPS will no longer offer discounted rates through […]
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A snapshot of Postal Service scanning data shows the national rating was 97.34 percent during the week ending Nov. 29, down 0.47 percent from one week earlier. The data was collected Dec. 4. Atlantic led the four areas with a rating of 97.65 percent, while Southern ranked last with a 97.02 percent rating. Among the […]
Read More… from Atlantic Area, MN-ND District lead in scanning
Postal Service employees may participate in an upcoming webinar to learn more about health, dental and vision plan options within the new Postal Service Health Benefits (PSHB) Program. PSHB — which takes effect in 2025 — is a new, separate program within the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program and will be administered by the U.S. […]
Last week, Link reported on the Postal Service’s preparations for this year’s holiday season. During a briefing for the news media, Joshua Colin, the organization’s chief delivery officer, and Steve Monteith, the chief customer and marketing officer, discussed the holiday efforts, which include installing new package sorting machines in postal facilities and reducing customers’ shipping […]
Rural Carrier Associate Christopher Williams was recently delivering mail in Lewisburg, KY, when he saw an older man passed out in a driveway. The customer’s pacemaker had malfunctioned, and his wife was in the house unaware of what had happened. Williams revived the man and propped him up against a car. The Postal Service employee […]